Footballing again...

This weekend was the beginning of a new footballing season in more ways than one. On the one hand the English premier League kicked off, and while I'm a little disappointed that my beloved team was unable to get on the score sheet at home against Reading, it is only the first game of a long season. We'll have to see what May 2008 has in store.

Sunday also brought about the re-beginning/continuation/revival of my somewhat non-existent footballing "career". Most of you are well aware of my knee problems over the past few years. Knee problems that have seen me under the knife on 3 separate occasions, 2 of which were for major ACL reconstruction. (You can read more about all of these here.)

I'll admit that I've had days when I wondered if I would ever be able to play again. After the first ACL surgery I worked hard to get fit and back into the game only to tear the ACL again in the opening 30 minutes of my first competitive game back. Now it's been almost a year since my last ACL surgery and the mental preparation for this return has been even harder. Will this ACL hold? Can I handle another major knee injury? Will I keep my sanity if I never play soccer again?

Well, on Sunday I made it out to play an 90+ minute scrimmage. Wow, I missed playing. I think this return is good for me, not only physically but mentally and emotionally. I'll be the first to admit that I was only playing at about 70%, but it felt good. A little sore and a little tentative, but it was somewhat familiar territory as I made my way around the pitch.

And lest I feel like I've lost any ability to play the game I received an invite from one of the players to join their team for the upcoming season. This came after only playing about 30 minutes of soccer. I'm leaning towards giving it a go. Some connections outside the church will be nice and an outlet like soccer is a necessity for me. The question will be whether or not I can stay fit and keep the ACL intact.

I'm sure if you keep wandering back here from time to time you'll find out whether the second ACL reconstruction will hold up. Come to think of it, someone could make a reality show out of this.